The Firebird is a character in several Russian folktales as well as the title character in the famous ballet choreographed by George Balanchine to music by Stravinsky. Yolen (Wild Wings: Poems for Young People, p. 349, etc.) combines these intertwined story strands to create a dual story of the folktale and the ballet. The design uses the folktale text and accompanying illustrations in the upper three-quarters of the pages, with a narrower segment of illustrations across the bottom quarter showing illustrations of the related story from the ballet. Prince Ivan is the hero of the tale, and with the help of the Firebird, he kills Kostchei the Deathless, also called the wizard of darkness, and his demons (scary black creatures with horns, tails, and cloven hooves). Kostchei is a fearsome fellow himself, with red eyes, pointed teeth, and nine-inch nails, and his death frees ten beautiful maidens and handsome young men from an evil spell so they can dance in joy and live happily ever after, of course. Yolen’s tale is, as always, professionally and smoothly told, with the polished cadences of an authentic folktale. Highly detailed illustrations capture the Firebird’s vibrant feathers, the ornate Russian costumes, and the fearful appearances of the wizard and demons. The double set of illustrations is somewhat detrimental to the folk tale, but will serve well as an introduction to the ballet. (Folktale. 5-8)
Pub Date: May 1, 2002
ISBN: 0-06-028538-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 2002
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Although the love comes shining through, the text often confuses in straining for patterned simplicity.
A collection of parental wishes for a child.
It starts out simply enough: two children run pell-mell across an open field, one holding a high-flying kite with the line “I wish you more ups than downs.” But on subsequent pages, some of the analogous concepts are confusing or ambiguous. The line “I wish you more tippy-toes than deep” accompanies a picture of a boy happily swimming in a pool. His feet are visible, but it's not clear whether he's floating in the deep end or standing in the shallow. Then there's a picture of a boy on a beach, his pockets bulging with driftwood and colorful shells, looking frustrated that his pockets won't hold the rest of his beachcombing treasures, which lie tantalizingly before him on the sand. The line reads: “I wish you more treasures than pockets.” Most children will feel the better wish would be that he had just the right amount of pockets for his treasures. Some of the wordplay, such as “more can than knot” and “more pause than fast-forward,” will tickle older readers with their accompanying, comical illustrations. The beautifully simple pictures are a sweet, kid- and parent-appealing blend of comic-strip style and fine art; the cast of children depicted is commendably multiethnic.
Although the love comes shining through, the text often confuses in straining for patterned simplicity. (Picture book. 5-8)Pub Date: April 1, 2015
ISBN: 978-1-4521-2699-9
Page Count: 40
Publisher: Chronicle Books
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2015
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2015
Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your dreads! Isadora once again plies her hand using colorful, textured collages to depict her fourth fairy tale relocated to Africa. The narrative follows the basic story line: Taken by an evil sorceress at birth, Rapunzel is imprisoned in a tower; Rapunzel and the prince “get married” in the tower and she gets pregnant. The sorceress cuts off Rapunzel’s hair and tricks the prince, who throws himself from the tower and is blinded by thorns. The terse ending states: “The prince led Rapunzel and their twins to his kingdom, where they were received with great joy and lived happily every after.” Facial features, clothing, dreadlocks, vultures and the prince riding a zebra convey a generic African setting, but at times, the mixture of patterns and textures obfuscates the scenes. The textile and grain characteristic of the hewn art lacks the elegant romance of Zelinksy’s Caldecott version. Not a first purchase, but useful in comparing renditions to incorporate a multicultural aspect. (Picture book/fairy tale. 6-8)
Pub Date: Oct. 1, 2008
ISBN: 978-0-399-24772-9
Page Count: 32
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 2008
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
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